Asthma UK supporter Maggi Smith will be taking part in Anthony Gormley's 'One and Otherâ€™ art project on the fourth plinth from midnight until 1:00am on Wednesday 19 August

Maggi will be getting in some training for the Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon, which she's running for us in October, by racing on a running machine!. As well as this, she will light and set off a lantern every seven minutes to represent that a person is rushed to hospital every seven minutes struggling to breathe because of their asthma, and to highlight the tragic loss of a life to asthma every seven hours.

4 Replies

Good on her;personally I think the Gormley project for the plinth is brilliant !!

7 years agoHidden

Nice idea but someone really needs to show the world what it is like for those of us whose lives are ripped apart by asthma. This won't change the perception is that asthma is a blue inhaler illness, I am looking forward to people asking me have I thought about using a treadmill rather than risking the pollen in the park. Sorry if I seem cheesed off I know raising funds is important but so is making people aware that asthma has varying degrees and impacts on peoples lives in different ways. Until it happened to me I had no idea, I certainly never thought ""there but for the grace of your chosen deity"" which my blue inhaler carrying friends think now they have seen what asthma has done to me. Someone told me the other day when I said that roughly 3 people a day die of ashtma, that that must be the ones who don't their medication or who are having their 1st attack.

Bex

7 years agoHidden

if only it were that simple bex. I wish it were true that it was only those with 1st attack or not using their meds. if only people could change places for 48hours they might gain some understanding. However much I moan that my steroids are back to 40 and am still struggling with silly things like walking i can't fully understand how those people like you actually keep going and fight for the rest of us. may be to appreciate what i have i should be able to swap places with you for 2 days then would know how well off i am.

7 years agoHidden

It's all relative though Katherine, and luckily AUK is here to support asthmatics of all severities. I hope no-one would ever feel that they have any less right to feel cheesed off, down-hearted or just plain scared about their asthma just because they are not as 'bad' (however we measure that) as some of the other folks on this board. There is always someone worse off than ourselves; unfortunately remembering that doesn't always work to make us feel better in my experience, it just makes us feel guilty about feeling bad! Just remember you have a right to feel hacked off when things are not going well, and AUK is here to support you just as much as anyone else.